State Senate panel wants to toughen drunken driving law

If approved, new level would be .08 percent, down from .10.

The Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday unanimously approved a bill that would reduce the threshold by which a driver in Pennsylvania is considered legally too drunk to drive.

Under the measure, drivers could be charged with driving under the influence if their blood-alcohol ratio is .08 percent or above. The limit now is .10 percent.

The bill now goes to the full Senate, which could vote on it by as early as next week, according to its, sponsor Sen. Charlie Dent, R-Lehigh. It is unclear whether the House will act before the Legislature quits for the year.

Similar efforts have failed in Harrisburg over the past several years. But now the state is facing an approaching deadline, that, if not met, could mean millions in lost road dollars.

Three years ago, Congress passed rules requiring all states to reduce their blood-alcohol ratio to .08 percent by October 2003 or risk losing 2 percent of their federal highway funding.

That would initially mean more than $20 million annually for Pennsylvania. Penalties rise to 8 percent in 2007 for noncomplying states.

Twenty-nine other states have already adopted the lower limits.

Dent said saving lives, not protecting federal funds, is the most compelling reason for the bill. "It is clear that there will be fewer alcohol-related fatalities," he said.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving has estimated that if all states reduce their limit, there would be between 500 and 600 fewer alcohol-related deaths a year on the nation's highways.

A 170-pound man with an empty stomach can reach a .08 percent blood-alcohol ratio after consuming four drinks in one hour. A 137-pound woman would reach it after about three drinks.

A study of other states that have reduced their blood-alcohol limits shows that initially there was a spike in the number of drunken driving arrests. But as people became aware of the lower threshold, arrest numbers eventually returned to previous levels.

Bruce Edwards, president of the Pennsylvania State Police Troopers Association, said the lower levels would make people think twice about having that last drink before hitting the road.

"We don't want to arrest more people," said Edwards. "We want more people to comply."